Ice cracking apparatus



Sept. 22, 1959 A. c. DE ANGELIS EI'AL 2,905,398 ICE CRACKING APPARATUS Filed March 14, 1957 I2 I4 I8 W 24 INVENTORS ANGELO c. p5 ANGELIS HARRY 'B UTTERFlELDJr.

A A ORNEY' Sept. 1959 w A. c. DE ANGELIS ElAL 2,905,398

1cm CRACKING APPARATUS Filed March 14;, 195? 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS ANGELO CQDE A'uesus HARRY E. BUTTERFIELD, Jn

ATTORNEY P 22, 1959 A. c. DE ANGELIS ETAL 2,905,398 ICE CRACKING APPARATUS File d March 14, 1957 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTQRS ANGELO c. DE ANGELIS HARRY E. BUTTERFlELD,Jr.

BY ATTORNEY Sept. 22, 1959 A. c. DE ANGELIS ETAL ICE CRACKING APPARATUS 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed March 14, 195'? INVENTORS ANGELO C. DE ANGELIS ATTORNEY a a n m F w i HARRY E. BUTTERFIELD, Jr.

Sept. 22, 1959 A. c. DE ANGELIS EIAL ICE CRACKING APPARATUS 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed March 14, 1957 INVENTORS ANGELO C. DE ANGELIS HARRY E. BUTTERFIELD Jl:

ATTORNEY United States Patent 6 2,905,398- ICE CRACKING APPARATUS Angelo C. De Angelis, Fair Haven, and-HarryE. Butterfield, Jr., Maplewood, N .J., assigrrors; by mesue assignments, to Dynamics Corporation of America, New York, N.Y., a corporation of New York Application March 14, 1957, Serial N0..645,969 -16 Claims. 01. 241-257) This invention'relates tomotordriven'ice cracking apparatus of the character 'adaptedto reduce relatively large pieces of ice, such as cubes from conventional freezer trays, to relatively small pieces or chips of'greater surface area more efiectively to chill beverages or the like. The present application is a continuation-impart of our copending application Serial No. 516,492, filed June 20, 1955.

A principal object of the invention is togprovide an ice cracking attachment for use asan accessory'with household blenders, particularly devicesknownas Waring Blendors, to be substituted for the usual blending container and driven by the usual blender electric motor. The principles of the invention, however, are not limited to such applications of use and'may, if-desired,'be embodied in unitary or other forms of devices.

Ice shaving or crushing machines heretofore devised possess the common disadvantages of too finely reducing larger pieces of ice to thin shavings or particles which tend too readily to melt and also to clog the machine with portions thereof. In improved contrast therewith devices of the present invention are designed to'shatter or crack larger pieces or cubes of ice into smaller discrete bits somewhat more resistant to melting-and having less tendency to agglomerate.

Another and more specific object is to provide adevice embodying a cutter element having an upright pointed blade'for engagement with the cubes or other pieces of ice and which is rotatable at relatively high speed, such as of the order of 10.000 r.p.m., very rapidly to shatter the charge of ice and which includes'an impeller portion adapted to throw the shattered pieces of ice outwardly against an impact surface further to comminute the same. The invention also contemplates the provision of a sweeping blade associated with the cutter element whereby to sweep the cracked ice particles from the comminuting chamber into a discharge outlet.

A further specific object is to provide an asymmetrical cup-shaped comminu-ting chamber in which the cutter element rotates, the chamber and cutter element being so arranged as to induce the discharge of cracked ice particles.

Another specific object'of the presentinventionis to provide a leakproof spout arrangement through which cracked ice particles are discharged whereby to avoid leakage. of water from the deviceaud to provide a bag or the like cooperating with the discharge spout so as efiiciently to-collect theentire output of the ice cracking device.

Other objectsof' the present. invention are to provide 7' specific. improvements in the device shown in our copending application particularly in'the matter of the construction and assembly of various parts of the device.

Still other andfurther: objects and advantages-of the invention will be apparent fromlthe following'cletailed description. taken. in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein a preferred embodiment-10f the principles of the invention has been selected for exemplification.

In the drawings-r Fig. 11is a side-elevational view'oflanicecracking dew 2,905,398 Patented Sept. 22, 1959 vice including a cracked ice collecting bag, constructed in accordance with the present invention, and shown attached to a Waring Blendor base such as shownin Patent No. 2,761,659;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the ice cracking device shown in Fig. 1 but with the-plunger and cap assembly removed;

Fig. 3 is a bottom plan View of the device;

Fig. 4 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 2 but with the plunger and cap assembly added;

Fig. 5 is a detail perspective view of the blade and holder assembly;

Fig. 6 is a vertical section view taken generally on the line 6-6 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 7 is a detail perspective View partly broken away of the spout and baffie assembly;

Fig. 8 is a horizontal sectional view taken on the line 88 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 9 is a horizontal vi'ew taken generally on the line 9-9 of Fig. 4; and

Fig. 10 is a fragmentarydetailsectional View taken on the line Ill-10 of Fig. 8.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, wherein like numerals refer to like parts, Fig. 1 shows the ice cracking apparatus in its preferred form as contemplated by the present invention mounted in operative position upon a blender base which is indicated in its entirety at B.

The ice cracking apparatus, as shown, includes a top housing 10 and a bottom housing 12 which may beprovided with wall reinforcing ribs or webs such as indicated in the drawings. The bottom housing 12' carries opposed projecting portions 14upon which rest opposed projecting portions l'dcarriedby the top housing 10 and the two'housing members are secured together by screws 18 projecting through apertures inthe projections Hand engaged in tapped recesses provided in the projections 16*. Suitable lock washers (not shown) may be provided for the screws 18 if desired. The top housing projections 16 arepreferably recessed, as shown, to form convenient mounting means for anarne plate, or the like, 20'and the opposed pairs of projections 14 and 16'- provide a convenient' finger hold for positioning the device upon or removing the same from the. blender base B. For operatively positioning the device upon the blender base B the lower skirt of the: bottom housing 12 is'provided'with a plurality of spacedperiplieralrecesses 22 such as shown inFig. 3 for mating engagementiwi'tli the upwardly projecting container supportingfin'gerslfil' usually provided onsuch blender bases.

The bottom'housin'g- 12'ha's formed therein a cavity in the form of a'cup-shapedicliamber 26 in which the upright blade or cutter element28, describedlin detail hereinafter, is mounted and in which the ice cracking operationis performed. For rotatably mounting the blade member 28 in-thechamber 26 a blade holder 3b'isprovided to which the blade28-may be: riveted as indicated at 32 and a shaft 34- depending fromthe blade holder 30 has a bottom connection 36 adapted fordriven engagement with the drive shaft 38 of the blender'elec-tiic motor as indicated in Fig. 4. The shaftt3disrotatably mounted in an annular bearing40 supported within the housing sleeve 42 and, to tend to overcome. any 0th balance of thecutter element 28'and to effect smoother running, a fly wheel 44 and thrust washer 46. may. be optionally provided at the lower. end'of'the shaft 34.

For feeding ice cubes or otherrel'atively large pieces of ice to the chamber 26 a chute 48' is provided centrally of the top housing 10*and; as shown best in Figs. 2 and 8, the chute 48 is preferably ofrectangular configuration in cross-section so asto tend to 1 prevent rotation therein of the charged ice cubes. As shown in Fig. 4, a plunger and plunger cap assembly indicated at 50 and 52, respectively, may be provided for forcing the ice to pass within the chute 48 downwardly against the upwardly projecting point of the cutter element 28.

The bottom end portions 54 of the wallswhich define the chute 48 preferably project inwardly of the chamber 26 below the upright point of the cutter element 28 and provide an impact surface against which split or shattered ice pieces impinge and are further broken up when thrown outwardly thereagainst by the cutter element. A transverse bafile 56 which is secured by the cars 57 to the discharge spout 60 fits around the impact surface walls 54 to provide a seal preventing the egress of ice particles upwardly of the chamber 26. Cut out tabs 58 at the peripheral edge portion of the baffle 56 are designed to engage ribs carried by the housing 10, as shown in Fig. 8, so as securely to seat the baffle.

The cutter element 28, as shown in detail in Fig. 5, is preferably formed of an integral piece of highly polished stainless steel having an extended upright sharpened point 62 at one side of its axis of rotation and, at the opposite side of its axis of rotation, an impeller surface 64 for throwing ice pieces split or cracked by the pointed blade 62 outwardly against the surrounding impact surface 54 and an end sweeping blade 66 for sweeping cracked ice particles outwardly of the chamber 26 through the discharge spout 60. The sharpened point 62 is preferably curved forwardly of the direction of rotation of the blade element 28 which, as shown, designed for counterclockwise rotation so as to bite into and shatter the ice pieces thrust downwardly into its path by the plunger 50. To tend dynamically to balance the asymmetrical blade element 28, a hole 68 may be provided in the body portion of its extended side and a counter balance 70 may project at the opposite side of its axis of rotation. Conventional blender motors are designed for relatively high speed rotation of the order of 10,000 r.p.m. and the cutter element 28 being directly driven thereby, accordingly shatters and cracks the charged ice pieces with great rapidity so that a constant stream of cracked ice particles emerges from the device as long as the charge continues.

The discharge spout 60 is formed preferably of relatively flexible material and provided with a flange 80 at its mouth or inlet end. For providing a leak proof connection between the spout 60 and the chamber 26, the flaring upright discharge mouth walls 74 and 76 of the chamber are provided each with outwardly extended flanges 78 for engagement with the spout flange 80 and an outwardly and downwardly extended lip 82 integral with the bottom discharge mouth wall portion of the chamber 26 overlaps inwardly of the adjacent inner wall portion of the spout 60. The lip 82, as best shown in Fig. 4, is provided with a concave outer edge for receiving a bead 84 provided at the adjacent inner extremity of the spout 60. The cracked ice receiving bag indicated at 86 in Fig. l is preferably provided with an elastic band 88 at its mouth for engagement with the spout 60 in the manner shown and a head portion 90 provided on the outer surface of the spout 60, as shown in Fig. 4, and over which the band 88 is adapted to be fitted, assists in retaining the bag 86 in secure engagement with the spout.

As a further important feature of the invention, means are provided for facilitating the discharge of cracked ice from the ice cracking chamber 26 into the discharge spout 60. To this end, the chamber 26 is preferably of asymmetrical cup-shape or oblate in horizontal crosssection and the axis of the blade 28 is offset centrally of the chamber, as shown in Figs. 6 and 9. Considering that the blade 28 rotates counterclockwise, there is thus provided a greater area for the chamber 26 at the discharge side thereof adjacent the discharge mouth wall 76 which in efiect forms a widening discharge path for the cracked ice particles.

It is to be understood that the present invention is not confined to the precise construction and arrangement of parts as herein illustrated and described but includes all such modifications thereof as -are embraced within the scope of the following claims.

We claimz 1. Ice cracking apparatus which comprises, a chamber oblate in horizontal cross-section with major and minor axes and upright wall portions, a discharge mouth having a width greater than half the length of said minor axis communicating with said chamber through said wall portions at one end' of said major axis, a tubular chute positioned/above said chamber for feeding ice downwardly into said chamber, the shape of said chute restraining rotation of ice therein, rotatable ice chipping and. impell-ing means disposed within said chamber beneath said chute, the axis of rotation of said rotatable means being positioned more than half the length of said major axis from said one end of said chamber, an impact surface having an edge positioned between and spaced from said impelling means and said wall portions, and an arm on said rotatable means for sweeping cracked ice out of said chamber through said mouth.

-2. Ice cracking apparatus which comprises, a chamb oblate in horizontal cross-section with a major axis and upright wall portions, a tubular ice feeding chute projecting downwardly into said chamber and terminating in a peripheral edge spaced from said walls, the cross-sectional shape of said chute restraining rotation of ice therein, rotatable ice chipping and impelling means disposed within said chamber beneath said chute, the axis of rotation of said rotatable means being positioned more than half the length of said major axis from one end of said chamber, said impelling means being spaced from said edge and arranged to throw chipped ice against said edge, and a discharge opening through said wall portions at said one end of said chamber.

3. Ice cracking apparatus which comprises, a chamber oblate in horizontal cross-section with major and minor axes and upright wall portions, a discharge mouth having a width greater than half the length of said minor axis communicating with said chamber through said wall portions at one end of said major axis, means for feeding ice to said chamber, rotatable means for cracking ice in said chamber, the axis of rotation of said rotatable means being positioned more than half the length of said major axis from said one end of said chamber, and an arm on said rotatable means for sweeping cracked ice out of said chamber through said mouth.

4. Ice cracking apparatus which comprises, a chamber oblate in horizontal cross-section with major and minor axes and upright wall portions, a discharge mouth having a width greater than half the length of said minor axis communicating with said chamber through said Wall portions at one end of said major axis, a tubular chute positioned above said chamber for feeding ice downwardly into said chamber, the shape of said chute restraining rotation of ice therein, a blade rotatable about a vertical axis disposed within said chamber beneath said chute, the axis of rotation of said blade being positioned more than half the length of said major axis from said one end of said chamber, a point on said blade upwardly extending on one side of said axis, a laterally extending impeller on said blade on the opposite side of said axis, a sweeping arm on said blade extending beyond said impeller and shaped to correspond to the inner contour of said chamber for sweeping more than half the volume of saidchamber, and discharging ice through said mouth, and an impact suaface having an edge positioned between and spaced from said impelling means and said wall portions.

5. A cutter element for an ice cracking machine comprising a blade formed to have a portion engaged to drive said blade about a vertical axis, an upwardly extending point on one side of said axis, said point being curved downwardly to project in the direction of rotation about said axis, a laterally extending impeller on the opposite side of said axis and a sweeping arm extending beyond said impeller.

6. A cutter element for an ice cracking machine comprising a blade formed to have a portion engaged to drive said blade about a vertical axis, an upwardly extending point on one side of said axis, said point also extending forwardly in the direction of rotation about said axis and a laterally extending vane on the opposite side of said axis.

7. A device for cracking ice into small particles which comprises, a chamber having side walls, a chute for feeding pieces of ice to said chamber, an upright cutter element supported in said chamber for relatively high speed rotation about a vertical axis, an impact surface projecting downwardly in said chamber and terminating in an edge inwardly spaced from said walls and surrounding in spaced relation the upper portion of said cutter element, said cutter element including an upwardly extending pointed blade on one side of said axis of rotation and a laterally extending impeller on the opposite side of said axis of rotation for throwing shattered ice pieces against said impact surface and said edge, and means for discharging ice particles from said chamber, the vertical portion of said edge being approximately between the vertical extremities of said cutter element.

8. The device according to claim 7 wherein the cutter element, pointed blade and impeller are integrally formed and said impeller has an edge downwardly sloping from said pointed blade.

9. The device of claim 7 wherein the upwardly extended end of the pointed blade is curved downwardly to project in the direction of its rotation.

10. The device of claim 7 wherein the inner bottom portion of said chute forms said impact surface and said edge.

11. The device of claim 7 wherein the cutter element also includes a sweeping blade for sweeping cracked ice particles from the chamber.

12. The device of claim 11 wherein the pointed blade, impeller and sweeping blade are integral and in substantial alignment and the impeller is disposed between said pointed blade and said sweeping blade.

13. The device of claim 11 wherein the interior of said chamber is cup-shaped and the lower edge of said sweeping blade generally conforms with the interior contour of said chamber.

14. The device of claim 7 wherein said chute forms a tubular passageway having transverse radial dimensions from any point which vary whereby rotation of the ice in said chute is restrained.

15. The device according to claim 7 wherein said transverse shape is substantially square.

16. Ice cracking apparatus comprising, an upright chamber, means for feeding ice into said chamber, means rotatable about a vertical axis in said chamber for chipping said ice and impelling chipped ice outward radially at high speed, impact means within said chamber forming a substantially horizontal edge surrounding and spaced from said rotatable means and spaced from the inner wall of said chamber, said edge being positioned to be struck by chipped ice impelled by said rotatable means, and means for discharging ice particles from said chamber, the vertical position of said edge being approximately between the vertical extremities of said rotatable means.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 179,224 Salmon June 27, 1876 652,919 McHugh July 3, 1900 1,185,322 Hottmann May 30, 1916 1,816,050 Lee July 28, 1931 1,873,351 Smith Aug. 23, 1932 2,181,000 Shively Nov. 21, 1939 2,203,672 Chester June 11, 1940 2,343,757 Egedal Mar. 7, 1944 2,684,207 OBrien July 20, 1954 2,760,728 Jordan Aug. 28, 1956 2,846,155 Higer Aug. 5, 195,8 

